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GENESIS 4: SETH
GENESIS 4: SETH
Approximate Dating: primeval-antediluvian era, 2 Relevant Scriptures: Genesis 4:25–26; 5:1–32; also 1 Chronicles 1:1–4; Luke 3:36–38
Approximate Dating: primeval-antediluvian era, 2 Relevant Scriptures: Genesis 4:25–26; 5:1–32; also 1 Chronicles 1:1–4; Luke 3:36–38
Image Notes: 3, 4, 5
Image Notes: 3, 4, 5
Biblical and Theological Significance
Biblical and Theological Significance
Cain’s murder of his brother Abel created a crisis in the first human family. A divine mandate had been given to multiply and fill and dominate the earth, but with only one son—and a murderer at that—the prospects looked dim. But God is not frustrated and thus enabled Eve to bear yet another son, Seth. Cain and Seth are the only sons sired by Adam for whom genealogies occur in the Bible. That of Seth is, of course, of greatest interest and importance since the “Seed” of the woman (Genesis 3:15 NKJV) passed through his lineage.6 The genealogy here is, by form, nonsegmented, consisting only of a list of Seth’s patriarchal descendants leading to Noah, where segmentation first occurs. As is true of all the named individuals, anonymous “sons and daughters” also are mentioned (Genesis 5:4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 26, 30).
Cain’s murder of his brother Abel created a crisis in the first human family. A divine mandate had been given to multiply and fill and dominate the earth, but with only one son—and a murderer at that—the prospects looked dim. But God is not frustrated and thus enabled Eve to bear yet another son, Seth. Cain and Seth are the only sons sired by Adam for whom genealogies occur in the Bible. That of Seth is, of course, of greatest interest and importance since the “Seed” of the woman (Genesis 3:15 NKJV) passed through his lineage.6 The genealogy here is, by form, nonsegmented, consisting only of a list of Seth’s patriarchal descendants leading to Noah, where segmentation first occurs. As is true of all the named individuals, anonymous “sons and daughters” also are mentioned (Genesis 5:4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 26, 30).
Seth (שֵׁת, seth, “replacement” or “substitute”) was appointed by Yahweh to replace his slain brother Abel (Genesis 4:25). His was the godly line as opposed to the wicked line of Cain (Genesis 4:16–24). Old Testament revelation relates Yahweh’s plan of salvation as a winnowing process in which individuals are called out from time to time to be channels of redemptive grace, beginning with Eve and passing through Seth and his offspring as presented in this genealogy, at least as far as Jacob, the father of Israel.
Seth (שֵׁת, seth, “replacement” or “substitute”) was appointed by Yahweh to replace his slain brother Abel (Genesis 4:25). His was the godly line as opposed to the wicked line of Cain (Genesis 4:16–24). Old Testament revelation relates Yahweh’s plan of salvation as a winnowing process in which individuals are called out from time to time to be channels of redemptive grace, beginning with Eve and passing through Seth and his offspring as presented in this genealogy, at least as far as Jacob, the father of Israel.
At some point in the lifetime of Enosh son of Seth, the name “Yahweh” first began to be known (Genesis 4:26; cf. Genesis 2:4), though he certainly appears in the Mosaic narrative by that name from the very beginning (thirty-nine times in Genesis 2–4). Later revelation makes clear that this is God’s covenant name, one used only by or on behalf of his own called-out ones (Exodus 3:13–16; 19:3–6; 34:27–28).
At some point in the lifetime of Enosh son of Seth, the name “Yahweh” first began to be known (Genesis 4:26; cf. Genesis 2:4), though he certainly appears in the Mosaic narrative by that name from the very beginning (thirty-nine times in Genesis 2–4). Later revelation makes clear that this is God’s covenant name, one used only by or on behalf of his own called-out ones (Exodus 3:13–16; 19:3–6; 34:27–28).
Another important character is Enoch, who “walked faithfully with God.” Rather than letting Enoch die a natural death, “God took him away” (Genesis 5:22–24). The Hebrew verb stem used with “walk” in both instances conveys the idea of striding along on the earth with a sense of ownership or lordship (see Job 1:7; 2:2). God “snatched him away” (so the verb here) and he literally “was no more,” a radical way of saying that he totally disappeared (Genesis 5:24, translation by Eugene H. Merrill). Where he went or where he is now is not disclosed in Scripture. The only other accounts of a similar phenomenon are the assumption of the prophet Elijah by a whirlwind in a “chariot of fire” into heaven (2 Kings 2:11) and the ascension of Jesus, who was “taken up into heaven” (Mark 16:19; Luke 24:51). The disappearance of Enoch may provide a glimpse ahead of time as to what it means for believers also to be “caught up … in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air,” as the Greek ἁρπαγησόμεθα suggests (1 Thessalonians 4:17). An apocryphal prophecy by Enoch, the son of Jared, was used in the New Testament book of Jude to draw an analogy between Enoch’s sudden departure into heaven and the sudden appearance of Jesus Christ when he returns to earth (Jude 14–15). The main point in both texts is suddenness and the need for believers to be prepared.
Another important character is Enoch, who “walked faithfully with God.” Rather than letting Enoch die a natural death, “God took him away” (Genesis 5:22–24). The Hebrew verb stem used with “walk” in both instances conveys the idea of striding along on the earth with a sense of ownership or lordship (see Job 1:7; 2:2). God “snatched him away” (so the verb here) and he literally “was no more,” a radical way of saying that he totally disappeared (Genesis 5:24, translation by Eugene H. Merrill). Where he went or where he is now is not disclosed in Scripture. The only other accounts of a similar phenomenon are the assumption of the prophet Elijah by a whirlwind in a “chariot of fire” into heaven (2 Kings 2:11) and the ascension of Jesus, who was “taken up into heaven” (Mark 16:19; Luke 24:51). The disappearance of Enoch may provide a glimpse ahead of time as to what it means for believers also to be “caught up … in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air,” as the Greek ἁρπαγησόμεθα suggests (1 Thessalonians 4:17). An apocryphal prophecy by Enoch, the son of Jared, was used in the New Testament book of Jude to draw an analogy between Enoch’s sudden departure into heaven and the sudden appearance of Jesus Christ when he returns to earth (Jude 14–15). The main point in both texts is suddenness and the need for believers to be prepared.
Nancy S. Dawson and Eugene H. Merrill, All the Genealogies of the Bible: Visual Charts and Exegetical Commentary, ed. Andreas J. Köstenberger (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Academic, 2023), 4–6.
Nancy S. Dawson and Eugene H. Merrill, All the Genealogies of the Bible: Visual Charts and Exegetical Commentary, ed. Andreas J. Köstenberger (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Academic, 2023), 4–6.
